Metro News & Reviews

Metro Board Member and L.A. County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas at the unveiling ceremony.

The memorial monument displaying a quote from Senator Song with Korean on one side.

The memorial monument displaying a quote from Senator Song with English on the other side.

USC alumni, friends, family and supporters of the late Honorable Alfred Hoyun Song gathered earlier today at the unveiling of the Alfred Hoyun Song memorial monument. The monument is located in the plaza outside of the Metro Purple Line Wilshire/Western Station in Koreatown.

Alfred Hoyun Song was California’s first Asian American state legislator and authored more than 200 laws, establishing a legislative record focused on the equality and protection of all people regardless of race, religion or economic status. He was also the first Korean American to be elected to the California State Senate, where he distinguished himself as chairman of the Judiciary Committee.

The memorial monument is engraved with a speech given by Senator Song in both Korean and English and was made possible by the Senator Song Commemoration Committee.

Metro Board Member and L.A. County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas presented the motion to honor Alfred Hoyun Song in 2012. There is a plaque produced by Metro located within the station dedicated to Senator Song.

Of course tax dollars were used. Who is paying for the Metro officials being there for the photo ops, the Metro resources such as those mic stands, the tents, printing those flyers, as well as bringing in guests like George Takei?

And read the fine print in the article:

“Ongoing maintenance of the monument will be the responsibility of Rail Facilities Maintenance. Since maintenance of the monument will be a multi-year responsibility, the Cost Center manager and Executive Director, Maintenance, will be accountable for budgeting any costs associated with this responsibility in future years.”

Basically, this means it’s us the tax payers to foot the bill for the maintenance and upkeep of this forever.

I have less of an objection to the Alfred Song station for three reasons – 1) he’s no longer living, 2) he did something unprecedented (first Asian-American elected to state office), 3) he was from the immediate area (as opposed to, say, North Hollywood or East LA which are nowhere near where those individuals who are to be honored lived).